Scientific.

Otago Witness, Issue 1383, 1 June 1878, Page 5

Scientific.

THE PHONOGRAPH.

The Phonograph (saya an American paper) is the name of a new and very ingenious mechanical contrivance, by means of which sounds of every description are registered and faithfully re-pro-duced au naturel, afterwards, by merely turning a crank. As such a claim is enough to stagger one's belief, we will repeat, more explicitly, that by means of this piece of extraordinary mechanism, the familiar tones of a departed voice, the sweot strains of music which have delighted our ear, the warbling of birds, and all other sounds, are faithfully reproduced by this instrument days, weeks, and months after the original sound waves have ceased to vibrate, when the voice of a loved one, perhaps, has been hushed for ever, after the keys of the piano or organ have been stilled or disabled, when the birds have ceased warbling, and the dog has tired of hearing his own bark. How like the enchanted fiction of the Arabian Nights all this sounds, but the statement is that of a sober fact. The last number of the Scientific American, bearing date March 30th, gives a description and an illustration of the wonderful invention.

It says : "If aocurate and clearly enunciated repetition of sounds made in it is the ultima Thule of the phonograph's capabilities, then it has already attained that point. Whore it is open to improvement (and to this the attention of the inventor is now being devoted), is in augmenting the intensity of the sound."

It consists of a' spirally-grooved brass cylinder, covered with tin-foil, mounted on a long, horizontal screw, the cylinder boing rotated, and at the same time moved laterally, by turning a crank on the end of its axis.

But as a further attempt at illustration, without an accompanying cut, would be useless, we will not attempt it here. The exhibitor, in N<3W York — Mr W. S. Applebaugh— lately sang into the machine an entire verse, and it was repeated as often as the cylinder was re-adjusted. Sounds of coughin, clearing the throat, knocks, noises of all kinds, were as accurately reproduced, A curious effect is produced by whistling, the apparatus giving for4si every note clearly and fully ; but more remarkable still is it to hear two voices at once come from the machine. The exhibitor firßt sang a verse, which was registered, and then, running the cylinder back, talked so that the indentations produced by the speech vibrations came over those made by the song. The instrument repeated both utterances simultaneously, each, however, being clearly distinguishable. Another od4 performance is turn-

ing the cylinder the wrong way and making the machine talk the language backwards. The only means, now used for increasing the volume of sound, is a kind of funnel shaped resonator, but Mr Thomas A. Edison, the inventor, is engaged in perfecting a plan whereby the loudness may be increased indefinitely. His last astonishing proposition is to construct a huge phonograph, place ifc in the great bronze statue of Liberty to be erected in New York Harbour, so that tho metal giantess can literally speak in thunder tones which shall be heard over the entire bay ! Just fancy. Had Mr Edison lived a few centuries ago, he would certainly have been accused of intercourse with the fellow of the cloven-hoof and arrow-head tail.

With the telephone and the phonograph as America's contributions to the inventions of the world in the nineteenth century, it would seem as though Columbia might fold her arms and let her fertile brain rest fallow for centuries without risk of being called a dullard.